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| Hey Insiders — Today, we're bringing you the latest on the California Senate's vote on autonomous trucks, plus BMW, Ford, and Honda's new joint venture. Scroll down for news on subscription e-bike startup Dance and Ford's F-150 production plans. Let us know which areas you would like us to cover next. If you find this newsletter helpful, please share it with a friend or colleague. Thanks for reading! Nicolas
p/mobilitynerd | |
| 1 | | BMW, Ford, and Honda announced the creation of a new joint venture, ChargeScape, focusing on vehicle-to-grid capabilities. The equal partnership is expected to launch operations in 2024, subject to regulatory approval. More: - The platform would enable electric vehicle owners to earn in exchange for sending energy to the grid.
Recap: - In June, Renault announced its 5 model would include bi-directional charging capabilities in France and Germany starting next year and in the U.K. in 2025. The automaker is also developing a vehicle-to-grid companion app.
- In May, Tesla expanded its virtual power plant program to 3,000 more homes in Australia.
- In January, Volkswagen launched a vehicle-to-grid program with Ovo Energy and energy platform Kaluza in the U.K.
- Also in January, General Motors, Ford, and Google announced a collaboration on virtual power plants to provide electricity during periods of low supply.
Q: Are you in the market for an electric vehicle? Does bi-directional charging factor into your decision? Join the conversation here. |     | |
| 2 | | Dance, an electric bike and moped startup, revealed it surpassed 10,000 subscriptions. The company operates in Paris, Berlin, Hamburg, Munich, and Vienna with bundles that include theft insurance and repairs. More: - Dance has also expanded to offer B2B employee benefit plans for companies such as Hello Fresh, Urban Sports Club, Outfittery, and BeeTooGreen, among others.
- The e-bike company also raised a new round of an undisclosed amount that included participation from 4P Capital; Carl Pei, the founder of smartphone manufacturer OnePlus; and Alex Asseily, investor and executive vice chairman at Lilium, among others.
- Dance last raised a €12M (~$12.9M) venture round led by BlueYard Capital, Eurazeo, and HV Capital in February.
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| 3 | | The California Senate passed a bill by 36 votes to 2 that seeks to ban autonomous trucks, following the state Assembly's passing of Bill 316. The proposal would require approval or veto from Gov. Gavin Newsom. More: - The bill proposes the obligation of trucks weighing over 10,001 pounds to have human safety drivers on board in order to operate.
- "We urge Gov. Newsom to veto AB 316 so experts in his administration can evaluate autonomous trucking technology and ensure California benefits from the technology," said Jeff Farrah, executive director for the Autonomous Vehicle Industry Association.
- The sector association points to 44 million miles of autonomous trucking without incidents, while Teamsters have expressed their support for the ban.
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| 4 | | Sales of electric and hybrid passenger vehicles in China reached a record 846,000 in August, rising from 780,000 in July. BYD comprised approximately 30% of "new energy vehicle" sales for August. More: - The sales of NEVs in August resulted in an increase of 27% YoY.
- Plug-in hybrids comprised 247,000 of NEV sales in August.
- 2.58 million passenger vehicles were sold in China for the month across engine types, representing an increase of 8.4% YoY and 8.2% MoM.
- Tesla sold 84,159 units made at Giga Shanghai, of which 19,465 were exported.
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| 5 | | Ford is planning to double production for its F-150 hybrid pickup truck amid lower-than-expected sales of the electric version. "We believe demand for our internal combustion and our hybrid portfolio will be durable with the window of growth, potentially longer and richer than most expected," said the automaker's CEO, Jim Farley. More: - Kumar Galhotra, president of Ford Blue, its ICE vehicle business unit, said the F-150 hybrid could surpass sales of the segment leaders, Toyota's RAV4 and Prius.
- The decision is attributed to demand for hybrids, including 60% of its Maverick sales.
- Ford sold 1,018 electric F-150 Lightning units in August, constituting a 57.1% YoY decline.
- $F was up 1.88% for the day and +3.58% WoW at market close on Tuesday.
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| 6 | | Scandinavian Airlines announced it is taking bids from potential investors until Sept. 25 as it works on a restructuring plan. The airline filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in the U.S. in July 2022. More: - SAS expects to raise $920M in new equity capital for restructuring.
- The airline reported a total of 7.1 million passengers for the months of June through August.
- In August, SAS carried 2,258,000 passengers, constituting an increase of 22% YoY.
- SAS, however, continues its daily flight schedule without risk of cancellations.
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- Auto supplier Schaeffler and VDL Groep plan to develop driverless shuttles for public transportation.
- Supply chain SaaS Descartes reported $143M in revenue for fiscal Q2, 17% higher than the same period in 2022.
- Battery electric vehicles in France increased by 60% YoY to 19,657 units.
- The British government is allocating £129M ($161M) for emission-free buses in localities outside London.
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Term of the Day Return on investment: Return on investment measures the amount of realized value produced minus the cost to achieve that result. Question of the Week Do you share details about your salary with your coworkers? Join the conversation |
INSIDE TRANSPORTATION LEADERBOARD (ALL-TIME) |
 | Sr. Analyst | | Nicolas S. is a Sr. Analyst at Inside, covering transportation and startup trends. He is an avid map maker and data nerd. Nicolas has worked in the shared-scooter space, as well as advised e-bike and moped startups. Follow him at @MobilityNerd. | | This newsletter was edited by Aaron Crutchfield | |
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